Sunday, March 23, 2014

If you remember Beth's Part I of her adventure from Nashville - St. Louis down allergy free back roads, she was about to enter the Gateway city of St. Louis, MO...

St. Louis MO Arch

Starting off with my normal
Whole Foods Market exploration, I navigated through several small neighborhoods
in search for that healthy pulse. Dierberg’s grocery and Schnucks
markets offered wide selections of gluten free products.

Of course I had to make my way
to Anheuser-Busch. “When in Rome…right?!” Despite
my efforts to track down the production details of their Redbridge gluten free
beer, the tour guides said, the gluten free production line was not on the
normal brewery tour. One can hope! Maybe my suggestions will be noted by the A-B family? I did learn that Stella Artois and Michelob Ultra both
produced a gluten free cider.

Anheuser Busch Tour Center, St. Louis MO

A cute little bakery stop on
the backroads was Whisk - A Sustainable Bakeshop. http://www.whiskstl.com Some wonderfully delicious gluten free baked goods and
macaroons in a very relaxing and welcome setting.

Whisk, St. Louis MO

Much to my surprise, I had yet
to try any Mexican food on my travels at this point, so when I drove past a
hip, vibrant looking place called Gringo, I had to stop and take a
"look-see-taste" http://www.gringo-stl.com
Delicious, hot, fresh chicken tortilla soup with
homemade corn tortillas and excellent service! I had the lunch special which included soup and two corn tortilla tacos
- I chose the Al Pastor -slow roasted pulled
pork, pineapple, red chiles, grilled red onion and also a Chicken Tinga - slow-braised chicken in tinga sauce (roasted tomato,
chipotle, garlic), guacamole, cilantro and onion.

Gringo, St. Louis MO

Dinner was a simple yet
sophisticated spinach salad back at the hotel. Had to save up for my much-anticipated big gluten free crepe breakfast
at the City Coffeehouse and Creperie! http://citycoffeeandcreperie.com

Gringo, St. Louis MO

Enter the crepes…. 100% organic, gluten
free, buckwheat batter. And boy was this place
hoppin’ at 8am! So many to choose from too, savory or sweet? That would be my toughest decision of the day! The Santa Fe
it was - chorizo, pepperjack, avocado, tomato, cilantro, red onion, fresh
spinach with Juan's house-made rojo sauce topped with avocado-sour cream sauce.
I’m here to say that not only was the crepe so delicate
and amazing, but Juan makes some darn good sauce! Gracias.

6 North was a quick coffee stop, but they offered a wide
range of gluten free options and the staff was very knowledgeable about those
choices. http://www.6northcafe.com

And now for my Jackpot Jewel of
Midwest gluten free thus far, I proudly introduce New Day Gluten Freehttp://newdayglutenfree.com/cafe/ It truly is a cornerstone of the gluten free community
in St. Louis and I had the honor to speak with Chef/Owner, Kelly Beck. From the time they purchased the location (previously
a gluten free kitchen, coincidentally named, Beck’s (Kelly’s last name!) Serendipity!)
it was meant to be for Kelly to connect with her community, share her story and
help literally thousands of people who come through her doors. I loved their travel map, with pinned visitors from
all 50 states, even world-wide!

If you are looking for ANYTHING
gluten free in St. Louis, this is your spot.

New Day, St Louis, MO

Although I could carry on and
on about more stops, delightful visits and fascinating conversations, I’ll wrap it up here, gluten free
style, and say thanks for joining me on this virtual tour down the gluten &
allergy-free backroads, USA. Thanks to everyone who helped make my journey a
bit more tasty and tantalizingly exciting.

Until our next road trip
adventure….

Cheers and Bon Appetit!

~Beth

Beth Mincher is the
Assistant Director of Events for Echo Event Solutions and a certified holistic
health coach. www.bethmincher.com

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Author of Blog

Welcome to Allergy Free Back Roads where we travel the U.S.A. setting up events for allergen-free living. On most trips, my teenage daughter, Erin a.k.a. "Doodle", comes along with me. We have been planning these events since Erin was diagnosed with Celiac Disease in 2008.

We live in the beautiful mountains of North Carolina, in the heart of Appalachia - But, you never know where we will end up next. I hope you will find motivation, perseverance, and a dose of humor thrown in while relating to our adventures as we travel; experiencing different cultures, allergen-free foods, and finding commonality in community.

The opinions and articles written here are my own and not paid for by the companies reviewed.